From yesterday's news:TSX plunges 750 points
Are there any other retirees out there in the blogosphere as worried as we are, at what is happening in the financial markets?
Our retirement funds are dwindling and there does not seem to be an end in sight.
We are fine tuning our budget and trying to eliminate needless purchases.
It is so frustrating because we have worked and saved all our lives and THOUGHT we had a tidy retirement fund.
And now this is happening.
I feel like crying.
I NEVER thought I would think that I might have to practise saying, "Welcome to Walmart. Here's your cart."
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20 comments:
Well, I've accepted the fact I'll be working till the age of 70 at least....POOH! Maybe we can all join together and create a '60's style commune!!! (But I insist on my own private bathroom.)
Yep, I'm scared...
I am scared because I don't have any retirement funds to worry about.
Scary all over, isn't it?
Dear Bear, the stock market was this low just 5 short years ago. I believe it will all be o.k. if people won't panic and sell. You haven't lost anything unless you sell so have faith and hang in there. Oh, and I hear WM isn't such a bad place to work. *wink*
until they change the mind set of the thugs on Wall Street this will always be a problem
corporate greed and corruption have run rampant here in the States for 8 years - the White House not only looked the other way, they were part of it.
I better start eating healthier so that I'll have organs to sell
It is a scary situation. Our retirement is dwindling rapidly. I hate the thought of trying to find a job at this point of my life.
Take heart dear Bear. I have a leaky roof and my insurance only pays for 'resultant damage' I can't afford to pay for the cause of the damage which is broken tiles. As for your investments Bear, I work for a financial planner and many of our self funded retirees have seen a 30% fall in their investments. It is indeed painful for them. It's important to remember that you haven't 'lost' anything until you liquidate. Hold fast. If you're in a 'growth' portfolio maybe switch to something more secure but don't bail. That's what's got us in this trouble in the first place, people panicking and selling down their stocks. It's definitely belt tightening time but it's not long term. Amazingly, it's not as bad as the 1987 tech crash and nowhere near the 1930's despite what the news may tell you.
As mentioned above, if you ride it out and don't sell right off the bat, there's a (hopefully?) good chance that in time (how long, who knows) things will bounce back.
If you have to get a job, I'd encourage you to do something you love. If you can ever figure out a way to make money on this blogging thing, please tell me.
And if you join TSAnnie's commune, y'all can come down here to live. It's beautiful, doesn't cost a lot, and people wouldn't think twice about there being a commune in their midst.
Please don't cry; you'll make me cry. Hang in there, things will work out the way they're supposed to. Try not to dwell on it, do what you can to get through and hope for the best.
We have been watching our nest egg diminish as we have been obliged to top up living costs. Savers are getting a raw deal as interest rates fall.I live in a country where no-one starves...aparantly. I hope we never have to test it out.
Credit, to easy and too much,Banks gambling with our money, and greedy dealers have all helped to get us into this mess [not to mention politicians] and yet the media continues to exhort us to buy buy buy and pay later.
It's madness. Hunker down, hang on, and if you think it will help, pray.
I have stopped looking. And I pray if we ride it out it will come back. Along with our house values....
Our small nest egg was a 'cushion' as we can live frugally on our retirement, and it seems that inflation will not start soon. But we have seen this 'cushion' shrink by 35%. I told myself I would not panic unless the market dropped below 7900...guess what! My bigger worry is that my children might loose their employment as this gets worse!!
We watched our retirement funds dwindle after a bad decision put the company with whom mr. kenju had a pension out of business. The original monthly amount would have kept us comfortable, but what is left after the reorganization is peanuts. Since mr. kenju's stroke, he couldn't even work at Wal-m*rt. I am resigned to working part-time until I am 80, and hoping that I remain healthy enough in body and mind to do so.
OK, I wrote this big long comment and Blogger bombed out on me. UGH. Here's what I remember saying:
My dad is very concerned about his pension. He is a GM retiree. I think he watches CNN 24/7 and needs to take a break. Call me the eternal optimist but I think it will all turn around. Take a deep breath, realize there is nothing you can do about it (frustrating, I know) and go about enjoying your life. What will be will be. MsMeta had a very good post on this awhile back. I wish I could point you directly to it but I can't remember.
I will survive if my social security check keeps coming, but my daughter, with two girls to support, can't find a job and I worry about them. Even with a degree, she is unable to find anything and it's scary.
GM, Ford, and other companies may be about to go bankrupt, Those employees ALREADY RETIRED, their pensions are secure, but those about to retire or still a few years away from retiring may lose big time.
The economy is sound, and yes we will have a recession, but don't let the media scare ya to death, the sky is not falling, and by the first of the year you will see everything begin to level out. and the stock market stabilize and begin to actually improve
Stay strong ... eventually it will all work out ...
:-Daryl
Well I did cry today, Bear Naked. It seemed there was nothing but bad news. Hubby read the morning paper to me and yes, our retirement fund has dropped by around 40%. As you know, he can barely walk across the room, and I really don't want to leave him alone every day to go to work. There were other health issues going on too, but the stock market and all our carefully saved money was the straw that broke the camel's back (for me today).
I read other's comments and I have to say I hope they are right. I'm usually such a positive person, but it must be the darkness this time of year that is getting me down.
My positive side says, yes - come january or thereabouts things will turn around. Let's hope so.
Hugs to everybody.
Here in Australia we're not so badly affected ...... yet. Our problem is that most of our money comes from minerals sold to China, China is having a recession because the US is no longer buying ..... so we wont be long I'm afraid. My father used to talk about the Depression and I used to laugh at 'history'!
six years ago it was lower than it is now. If you can ride out the next 3 to 5 years, it will be fine. Just don't sell or cash any RRSP's if you can help it. If you cash out now you just confirm the losses.
Hang tough.
It will be fine
it's depressing, and we still have another 15 + years to go yet.......we have lost thousands.....
Gill
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